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Jeanette Colegrove diaries
Jeannette Colegrove (1914-1984), was born on Corry, Erie County, Pennsylvania, but by 1940, she was living in Philadelphia and working as a reporter. In these three volumes, she documented her daily life from late 1936 to late 1940. She wrote daily entries that ranged in length, but she nearly alway...
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| Collection: | Jeanette Colegrove Diaries |
| Collection Number: | 4319 |
| Format: | Manuscript |
| Language: | English |
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| Online Access: | Link to finding aid |
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| Physical Description: |
0.2 Linear feet ; 3 volumes |
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The collection is open for research. |
| Summary: |
Jeannette Colegrove (1914-1984), was born on Corry, Erie County, Pennsylvania, but by 1940, she was living in Philadelphia and working as a reporter. In these three volumes, she documented her daily life from late 1936 to late 1940. She wrote daily entries that ranged in length, but she nearly always covered the weather; her work at The Philadelphia Record ; visits with and from friends and family; general travel, particularly back to her hometown of Corry; shopping or other amusements; and church visits.
She mentions many names throughout the entries. Of particular interest is the first mention of "Joe McLaughlin" in the second volume dated 3 February 1938 with regular mentions of him after that date. One entry typical of her eye toward detail notes that on Friday, September 23, 1938 she went "to Piccola's for dinner with Joe McL to see A Woman's a Fool to be Clever." She married Joseph P. McLaughlin, a fellow-reporter, in 1940. Genealogical records [not in the collection] indicate that Jeanette died on August 9, 1994 with the last name "McLaughlin."
In general, she meticulously kept track of her finances, noting how much she paid each day for room and board, food, carfare, and anything she purchased. She listed daily amounts spent within and next to each diary entry, and at the fronts of each volume she recorded her general income and expenditures. Movies and restaurants were some of her favorite activities; her entries abound with minute details about movies, actors, and her favorite eateries such as H&H [Horn and Hardart].
Some examples of her entries include the following:
November 3, 1936 - "happy crowds near midnight. A real landslide for Roosevelt"
November 26, 1936 - "Thanksgiving - we worked. Saw Gimbel's parade."
December 31, 1936 - "to see Walter Huston and Brian Aherne in Othello."
January 1, 1937 - "ate breakfast at H&H and the street full for the Mummer's parade which went by the Record from 11-3."
November 27, 1937 - "Army 6-Navy 0"
May 8, 1938 - "Dinner at Stouffer's and heard War Admiral won the Kentucky Derby"
June 2, 1938 - "saw Katherine Hepburn in Quality Street."
October 29, 1938 - "saw The Sisters with mother"
September 3, 1939 - "Joe called to say France and England in the War." |